Buy-to-let landlords still looking to increase portfolios

Nearly half (46%) of landlords with two or more properties expect to increase the size of their portfolio in the next few years, the Bank of Ireland’s UK Buy-to-Let Market Index has found.

More than half (52%) of homeowners would also like to become a buy-to-let landlord if they could afford it.

With last week’s High Court ruling that Theresa May does not have the power to trigger Article 50 without parliament’s consent, the Bank of Ireland reckoned the index shows that the UK buy-to-let market remains resistant to the economic uncertainty of Brexit.

More than half of landlords (54%) think that the vote to leave the EU will make no difference to their BTL investments – and one in five (19%) believe Brexit will benefit to their business.

“Despite a number of events which were expected to have a negative impact on the sector, homeowners and landlords continue to see buy-to-let as a solid long-term investment.

“It’s really encouraging to see such confidence in the market, and I am particularly pleased to see that the Mortgage Affordability Index has risen to record highs.

“Landlords do, however, need to be aware of the impact that George Osborne’s tax changes will have on the sector and ensure that provisions are made to protect against this.”

Despite this supposedly positive sentiment over half (55%) of landlords expect to increase rents and more than a third (38%) are likely to switch mortgages in order to reduce the impact of tax relief changes on mortgage interest payments.